2. The mazurka (Polish: mazur or mazurek) is a
Polish musical form based on stylised folk dances in triple
meter, usually at a lively tempo, with character defined
mostly by the prominent mazur's
"strong accents unsystematically placed on the second or
third beat". The mazurka, alongside the polka dance,
became popular at the ballrooms and salons of Europe in
the 19th century, particularly through the notable works
by Frédéric Chopin. The mazurka (in Polish mazur, the
same word as the mazur) and mazurek (rural dance based
on the mazur) are often confused in Western literature as
the same musical form.
3. In the 19th century, the form became popular in
many ballrooms in different parts of Europe.
"Mazurka" is a Polish word, it means a Masovian woman or
girl. It is a feminine form of the word "Mazur", which — until the
nineteenth century — denoted an inhabitant of Poland's Mazovia region
(Masovians, formerly plural: Mazurzy). The similar word "Mazurek" is
a diminutive and masculine form of "Mazur". In relation to dance, all
these words (mazur, mazurek, mazurka) mean "a Mazovian dance".
Apart from the ethnic name, the word mazurek refers to various terms
in Polish, e.g. a cake, a bird and a popular surname.
Mazurek is also a rural dance identified by some as
the oberek. It is said oberek is a danced variation of the sung mazurek,
the latter also having more prominent accents on second and third
beats and less fluent of a rhythmical flow, which is so characteristical
of oberek.
4. Latin America
Brazil
In Brazil, the composer Ernesto Nazareth wrote a Chopinesque mazurka
called "Mercedes" in 1917. Heitor Villa-Lobos wrote a mazurka for classical
guitar in a similar musical style to Polish mazurkas.
Cuba
In Cuba, composer Ernesto Lecuona wrote a piece titled Mazurka en
Glisado for the piano, one of various commissions throughout his life.
Nicaragua
In Nicaragua, Carlos Mejía Godoy y los de Palacaguina and Los
Soñadores de Saraguasca made a compilation of mazurkas from popular folk
music, which are performed with a violin de talalate, an indigenous instrument
from Nicaragua.
5. —
Curaçao
In Curaçao the mazurka was popular as dance music in the nineteenth century, as well
as in the first half of the twentieth century. Several Curaçao-born composers, such
as Jan Gerard Palm, Joseph Sickman Corsen, Jacobo Palm, Rudolph Palm and Wim
Statius Muller, have written mazurkas.
Mexico
In Mexico, composers Ricardo Castro and Manuel M Ponce wrote mazurkas for the
piano in a Chopin fashion, eventually mixing elements of Mexican folk dances.
Philippines
In the Philippines, the mazurka is a popular form of traditional dance. The Mazurka
Boholana is one well-known Filipino mazurka.
Portugal
In Portugal the mazurka became one of the most popular traditional European dances
through the first years of the annual Andanças, a traditional dances festival held
nearby Castelo de Vide.
